Taking Audience Choices

Overview

Today’s lesson is a script-building task for Year 7 Drama that connects performance planning to audience needs—without doing practical performances. Students will create a short, shareable “choose-your-own-version” script by selecting options that best suit a chosen audience, purpose, and tone.

Learning intentions

• WALT plan what we will communicate to an audience by choosing language, structure, tone, and content.
• WALT take notes using key words and short phrases to develop a script outline.
• WALT organise ideas into a logical script sequence (scene/turns/ending).
• WALT practise clear spoken communication planning through writing for performance (voice/tone choices).

Success criteria

• I can identify an audience’s age/interests and plan my tone to match.
• I can choose from script options to build a coherent beginning, middle, and end.
• I can use key words/phrases (not full paragraphs) to plan lines for a character.
• I can explain one reason for my choices using simple sentence stems.

Curriculum links

• Oral Language: Identifying and planning for an audience’s age, interests, and prior knowledge about the topic.
• Oral Language: Effective presentation planning involves selecting language, structure, tone, and content that suit the audience, purpose and form.
• Writing: Effective planning helps clarify ideas, structure content, and meet the intended writing purpose.
• Writing: Taking notes using key words and phrases to support idea development.
• Writing: Organising ideas logically into paragraphs, sections, or stanzas (applied here to script sections/scene beats).

Lesson structure (75 minutes)

1. 0–8 min · Hook (Slide deck opening). Teacher opens the script choices introduction slides and asks: “If you tell the same story to a younger class and your principal, what should change—tone, words, or structure?” Students do a quick 1-minute think, then pair-share one idea.

2. 8–15 min · Direct teach: audience → choices. Teacher uses the script choices introduction slides to model a simple planning chain: Audience → Tone → Language choices → Script structure. Students complete a short “My Audience” box on the script options planning worksheet using sentence starters (e.g., “My audience is…”, “They might know…”, “I will sound… because…”).

3. 15–28 min · Guided notes (low-literacy supports). Teacher explains that students will not write a full script first; they will collect key words and phrases (not long sentences). Students use the script options planning worksheet to:

• circle a purpose option (inform, persuade, entertain)
• circle 2 tone options (e.g., funny, serious, suspenseful)
• pick key characters (name + one trait word) using a word bank on the worksheet.

4. 28–45 min · Build phase: “Choose-and-create” script. Teacher keeps the class on track using the script choices introduction slides which shows 3 script sections (Beginning / Middle / Ending) with “option cards” described in the slides (students choose which option best fits their plan). In groups of 3–4, students:

• select one beginning option and add 2 key-word notes for the character line
• select one middle conflict/turn option and add 2–3 key-word notes
• select one ending/lesson option and add 1 key-word note for closure Teacher circulates, checking that each choice matches the planned audience tone.

5. 45–55 min · Share-check (no practical performance). Teacher directs a gallery walk of script outlines on desks (students read only the key words and chosen options, not full performance). Using the script choices introduction slides, students give feedback using one stem: “Your tone matches the audience because…” or “Your structure is clear because…”

6. 55–68 min · Drafting support: turn notes into short lines. Teacher returns to the script choices introduction slides to model converting notes into very short lines (1–2 lines per beat). Students write a “final version” in the script boxes on the script options planning worksheet using sentence starters and character tags (e.g., “I can’t believe…”, “Maybe we could…”, “So the lesson is…”). Differentiation for low literacy: students may choose “fill-in” lines from the worksheet option set and only add 1 original word.

7. 68–75 min · Plenary + quick exit ticket. Teacher uses the script choices introduction slides for a final prompt: “What did you change for your audience?” Students complete a 30-second oral share with a partner, then finish an exit check: underline the audience choice, circle one tone choice, and write one reason in one sentence (or a key phrase).

Resources

• the script choices introduction slides (full-deck for hook, modelling, instructions, and plenary)
• the script options planning worksheet (audience box, option circles, key-word notes, short script boxes)
• Coloured pencils or highlighters for circling tone/purpose
• Word banks on worksheet: tone words, purpose verbs, character trait words
• Timer visible to students
• Grouping: 5–7 groups of 3–4 students

Assessment

• Formative during groups: teacher checks that choices (tone/language/structure) match the identified audience.
• Formative via feedback stems: students can state one reason for their choices.
• Exit check: students underline the audience choice and write one reason (sentence or key phrase).

Differentiation

• Support for incredibly low literacy:
• “Choose-and-fill” lines on the worksheet; students add only 1–2 original words
• sentence starters for audience reason (“I chose this tone because…”)
• teacher models one beat-to-line conversion using key-word notes
• Structured collaboration: group roles (Chooser, Writer, Checker, Reader of key words) to reduce reliance on writing alone.
• Extension for higher literacy/confident writers:
• add one extra option choice (e.g., a second ending beat) and justify it
• include a clearer purpose statement in the ending key line
• EAL support: tone/purpose visual word bank and consistent sentence stems reduce language load.